Scholars like Edgar Schein argue that culture is mostly invisible to insiders. After working across many organisations, I’ve seen the truth in that. I’ve worked with leaders and executive teams who can no longer recognise the culture they operate in. Culture surveys help, but many organisations don’t always know what to do with the results. When a new leader arrives, they briefly occupy a rare position.

I stumbled across a little social experiment on Facebook the other day. The caption was: “Help me choose the most suitable tiles.” See image below. Naturally, I clicked in - partly curious, partly wanting my preferred tile validated (No. 1). But here’s what stopped me: out of 65 comments, there was no clear loser. Every tile had its fans. Some people were bold and decisive. Others were completely unsure. A few went totally off-script: “None of them—change the wall colour.”

I’m seeing a lot of commentary across business and government news about low productivity, financial strain, cost overruns and the real risk of slipping living standards in Australia. I’ve been thinking about the leadership implications — and why coaching and training for increased productivity has become essential. If productivity is about creating more value without more hours, more people, or more cost, then yes — Australia has a problem.